PEARL JAM HASN'T LOST ITS LUSTER Rock still matters in group's new CD, 'Binaural'

Pearl Jam "Binaural" (Epic) Imagine how Pearl Jam must feel. Lately, the group's stirring sound has spawned two of the worst possible imitators - Creed and Godsmack - both of whom now outsell Pearl Jam by far. At the same time, the trendy end of rock has moved toward the frat-metal loutishness of Limp Bizkit or the speed-metal gimmickry of Slipknot. In such a dim and cynical world, what's a band of old-time moralists like Pearl Jam to do? Soldier on, apparently - making music as introspective and, yes, occasionally self-righteous, as ever. If anything, the dire situation with guitar-rock has brought greater distinction to PJ, not to mention given Eddie Vedder & Co. a new excuse to feel self-important. Pearl Jam's seventh studio album, "Binaural," contains some of the most arresting riffs of the band's career, fired by an evolving point of view. The CD starts out stronger than it ends up. Its first three tracks gallop and wail, catching the ear and the feet. If the band had kept up that level of energy throughout, "Binaural" would tie with 1993's "Vs.

" as PJ's best work. Unfortunately, it couldn't quite maintain the pace. The LP's opener, "Breakherfall," has the kick of such PJ classics as "Rear View Mirror.

Advertisement

" "God's Dice" recalls the punishing beat of The Who, and "Evacuation" brings back the stuttering guitars of early XTC. The album slowly slacks off from there, but at least it serves up some choice ballads and snappy tracks along the way. Many songs will remind listeners of classic-rock touchstones - from Pink Floyd to U2. Clearly, Pearl Jam wanted to keep things simple, ditching the artier, world music allusions of its 1996 "No Code" album. Lyrically, "Binaural" chronicles Pearl Jam's changing attitude, detailed in the words of Vedder and, to a lesser extent, band member Stone Gossard. They both have come a long way. On "No Code," the band finally stopped blaming absent parental figures for the guys' problems. On 1998's "Yield," the guys eased up on their attempts to be portrayed as martyrs and musical statesmen. Having gotten over all that, it makes sense that the new album would find Vedder and Gossard more vulnerable than in the past. The vagaries of fate, their fears of insignificance and the risks of love occupy them now. In "Light Years," Vedder even faces the ultimate limitation: death. All of this isn't to say that the band has entirely lost its smug side. In "Soon Forget," Vedder goes on an anti-money rant that's cheap coming from someone so wealthy. It's an even bigger shame because the music soars. Focusing on just the voice and acoustic guitar, the song recalls one of Vedder's favorite albums, "Rough Mix," by his idol Pete Townshend and Ronnie Lane. The group makes up for any losses in "Rival," a nod of support to the outcasts of Littleton, Colo. While so many commentators focused mainly on the killers, or offered dull pep talks to the survivors, Vedder deals with the pain felt by all social outsiders, an underexplored angle to the story. Of course, Pearl Jam wrote about this same subject in its very first hit, "Jeremy," another paean to tormented teens, which gives the band special authority, and even a whiff of prescience. In fact, PJ sounds more passionate about the subject than ever - only now the band addresses it with more compassion than anger. Several years after losing music's center spotlight, Pearl Jam continues to make records with a righteous sense of alarm, fired by the rare and moving belief that rock still matters.